A special celebration dinner can be the perfect occasion to spend time with those who matter most to you and something going wrong is the last thing on your mind.

Unfortunately, for a large group of friends and family who visited a pub a couple of weeks ago, the celebratory meal turned sour.

There were 33 guests who attended a meal at a pub near Ingatestone to celebrate a birthday and 25 of them became ill following the outing. Two of those had to go to hospital because their symptoms were so severe.

One woman was a member of the party that visited the White Hart Inn, Swan Lane, Margaretting, on February 18.

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A spokesperson for Chelmsford City Council said: "Chelmsford City Council and Public Health England (PHE) have been made aware that a number of people attending a celebratory meal at an Ingatestone pub suffered with symptoms common with infectious gastroenteritis, although this is yet to be confirmed.

"Chelmsford Environmental Health Officers have been working with PHE and the pub to provide hygiene and infection control advice to help stop the illness spreading.

"PHE has also advised the cases that are poorly what to do to aid recovery and prevent them spreading the germ to others."

What is infectious gastroenteritis?

Gastroenteritis is the inflammation of the guy caused by a virus or bacteria and a type of highly-infectious virus that can be spread. The symptoms are usually connected with sickness and diarrhoea and similar to food poisoning.

The symptoms:

Sudden diarrhoea

Feeling sick (nausea)

Being sick (vomiting)

Stomach ache or cramps

A high temperature of 38C or above

They usually start a few hours or days after picking up a bug.

Dr Sally Millership at Public Health England East of England, said: "Gastroenteritis affects people of all ages. It is highly contagious and although unpleasant, people usually recover within two to three days.

"Good hygiene such as hand washing and disinfecting contaminated surfaces is the key to preventing this infection spreading.

"There is no treatment for the virus but it is important to keep hydrated to combat the loss of fluids.